Before you email to ask, there are no trains due to the lack of railway tracks in this part of Thailand. The bus timetables below probably won’t vary too much over the 2022-23 High Season.  Inter-island boat schedules are at the bottom of the page and these too remain pretty similar year on year.

Having said that covid restrictions have been playing havoc with people’s travel plans since early 2020 and, as of early 2022 that’s still the case. Don’t expect all bus or boat services to be running until normality resumes.

Buy tickets for minibuses and inter island boat services from any tour agent.   Prices should be the same everywhere, although some hotels like to up the prices they charge guests for tickets for tours and transport, and it’s worth haggling if you have a group of people as a sensible agent should be willing to earn a little less commission rather than miss out on a big sale.

Buses from Bangkok to Koh Chang

Ideally take the Government Bus 999 which runs between Ekamai Bus Station, Sukhumvit Rd, Bangkok and the ferry piers, highlighted in green below. The ticket price is 261 Baht per person. 

These buses are all new and in good condition.  They provide a free snack and drink on the bus and it will also stop a couple of times during the journey.  Once for a toilet break and once for a longer 20 minutes break that will enable passengers to grab a coffee, snack or plate of Thai food.

As this is the best way to get to Koh Chang by public transport I have written a separate guide on How to Take the 999 Bus from Ekkamai Bus Station to Koh Chang.

Overnight Buses from Bangkok to Koh Chang

No there is no night bus to Laem Ngop, where the piers are located. But there is a Cherdchai bus from Ekkamai have a service which leaves at 23:30. It arrives at Trat bus station at 05:00 and from there you get a songthaew to the piers. There’s only 30 minutes of waiting time before you can get on the first boat, so it works well.

For people trying to save a night’s accommodation it’s still better to travel by night in terms of overall cost. And the traffic isn’t so bad. Daytime buses to the piers from Bangkok or vice versa take 6+ hours, nearly 7 if they go via the airport. Nighttime is less than 6 hours either way, sometimes close to 5 hours.

Note that at Ekkamai they will try and sell you the through ticket to Koh Chang (including the boat ticket). There’s no reason to buy the boat ticket until you get to Trat, because there’s no discount, but it’s up to you.

Going back to Bangkok there is a 23:30  bus from Cherdchai too, from Trat bus station. So you can do the same thing in reverse.  However, you’ll have quite a long wait after taking the last boat off Koh Chang from Centrepoint pier at at 19:30 to getting top Trat bus station.  And there’s not a lot to do in Trat bus station late night. Or in Trat town for that matter.

Ko Chang is a paradise for beach seekers, that should be your main reason to coming here and enjoy some quiet and peaceful times. All the beaches are all on the west coast, with White Sand beach in the north and Lonely beach in the south.  In between, you have Klong Prao - the longest beach on the island and Kai Bae beach.

Note, that each beach has a different atmosphere. So there isn't necessarily a best beach on Ko Chang. There are other, quieter, beach areas on the island and you'll be able to travel to them if taking private hires around the island or tours. Next you will find the main most popular beaches:

• White Sand Beach: The closest to the ferry piers and by far the busiest & most touristy beach on the island. Everything you need is within easy walking distance of your resort. Accommodation is mostly 2-3 star resorts on the beach. There's a wide choice of restaurants, plus beer bars, the ubiquitous Irish pub and numerous others.
  
• Klong Prao Beach: The longest beach on Koh Chang and cut in three by a large river estuary in the centre of the beach and a much smaller one near the south.  Here you'll find accommodation mostly in larger resorts.  The south end of the beach is home to some of the best resorts on the island Emerald Cove Resort, Centrara Tropicana and The Dewa.  
  There are relatively few resorts for the length of beach and so it's easy to walk a few minutes and find a quiet spot to swim even in peak season.  Near the north end, you'll find plenty of small shops and restaurants clustered on the roadside.
  
• Kai Bae Beach: This one also has two halves.  The south having by far the best stretch of sand.  But the northern half having three of the islands best resorts adjacent to each other - The Chill, Gajapuri Resort and AWA Resort. All are excellent places to stay but the actual beach is not as good. 
  
• Lonely Beach: The original backpacker beach on Koh Chang.  Although it is now moving more upmarket.  There are only three places to stay actually on the beach itself.
  Most accommodation is a few minutes walk south in a busy built up area.  This is also home to a lot of cheap guesthouses and huts.